Which to use
“cost” is a noun and “cross” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #27,668
- “cost” frequency rank
- #9,698
- “cross” frequency rank
- 37366
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cost | cross |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Kosten | diagonal in das gegnerische Feld |
Letter map: cost vs cross
Shared letters muted; letters that set cost and cross apart highlighted. Shared run: 3.
Grammar separator: cost vs cross
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: cost is anoun and crossanadverb. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37366, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cost is recorded at frequency rank #27,668, classified as anoun, pronounced […]. cross is at rank #9,698, tagged as anadv, pronounced [kʁɔs].
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 37366, this pair ranks #1,592,109 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of cost vs cross
Shared letters: cos. Private to "cost": t. Private to "cross": r.
"cost" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "cross" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cost" for "cross" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "cost" or "cross" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pair "cost" vs "cross" is on the table, pick a follow-up below.
- Full dictionary entry for "cost" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "cross" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,592,109 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cost" and "cross" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cost vs puzzles". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #1,592,109 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.